January 25, 2013 | 12:02 pm

Redemption: The American Dream

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

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By Rabbi Mark Borovitz

I have been reading the newspapers and watching some movies and I am struck by the dissonance between these two media outlets. In the news, we read about the City of Bell and how the leaders raped the city with no regard or remorse. Today I read about a party thrown by CAA at Sundance that seems inappropriate. The Wall Streeters and the Banks too Big to Fail have never really made amends and admitted guilt. No one wants to acknowledge when they have been wrong.

The Congress is too busy blaming each other to get things done. Businesses are trying to crush their competitors with lies, innuendos, corporate spying, and copyright infringements. Non-Profits are afraid to admit failures/weaknesses for fear of losing their funders. The Government, in their wisdom, has limited deductions for charitable contributions on the people who give the most. No one wants to take responsibility!

Yet, three movies that are at the top of the lists—Lincoln, Argo and Silver Linings Playbook—are all redemption stories. In Silver Linings Playbook, the main character finally realizes his wrong. In Argo, the main character forces the Government to follow through and redeem the people who got out of the embassy. In Lincoln, the 13th Amendment is the main thrust of Lincoln’s last months of his life. All of these movies celebrate the Spirit of Redemption.  Lincoln and Argo are even based on true stories. Was there subterfuge and deceit to make the ends? Yes! Is this the right way to do things? At first blush, I would say no, yet does the end justify the means? In both cases I have to say it was about saving lives. The Jewish Tradition says that saving lives is the ultimate Mitzvah.

In our world today, we are more concerned about saving our money and our “face” than about saving lives, ours and others. Without Redemption, without T’Shuvah, without admitting guilt we will never move forward and change our ways of living. I am angry that we, the people/stakeholders, allow our Government to engage in rhetoric and gridlock. I am angry that we, the people/shareholders, don’t hold our companies accountable for their failures as well as their successes. I am angry that we, the people/the consumers, watch Argo, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, etc. and don’t say NO to inappropriate behaviors and YES to Redemption.

We have the way, our country was founded on Redemption. Our faith/All faith is founded on Redemption. I am calling on you to join me in making Redemption a movement. Let’s redeem ourselves, let’s redeem others and let us all become Addicted to Redemption so we can all LIVE THE DREAM of God and us!

January 24, 2013 | 2:15 pm

A’s, ADD, and Adderall

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Michael Soter

Last week, Michael Welch, my esteemed colleague and blog-writing rival, wrote about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.  He claimed that people wear the label of OCD like a crown, but that the actual disorder is something much more sinister than the desire for cleanliness.

In my line of work, speaking to adolescents, I notice that another disorder is equally over diagnosed—Attention Deficit Disorder.  Those who have a difficult time paying attention in school are given Adderall when they’re eight years old.  The parents who demand straight A’s from their middle-schooler rush them to a psychiatrist when they get a C in seventh grade Spanish.  Parents all think that their kid should be getting A’s, that their child should be able to sit in a classroom for eight hours a day and not get distracted—if this is difficult, it must be the work of a psychological imbalance.  

I am not saying that ADD doesn’t exist and I am not asserting that nobody should be medicated for it. It is sometimes necessary and incredibly beneficial.  But it is astounding how many kids are given medication at such a young age, how many of my friends continue to use ADD as an excuse for their inability to pay attention during meetings.  Let’s be real—paying attention is hard, meetings are boring, and not every kid is meant to get a 4.0 GPA.  Your kid might not end up being a brain surgeon, and it’s not because he has a disorder, it’s because he’s just not that good at science.  

Maybe we should focus our attention on helping kids pay attention instead of running to pill-peddlers every time things aren’t going perfectly.  Here’s a common scenario:  kid gets put on Adderall, kid can’t sleep, kid gets put on medication for his insomnia, kid sleeps too much, kid gets put on anti-depressants, kid gets numb, kid starts smoking weed.  Now, we have a 16 year old who takes amphetamines to go to school, sedatives to go to sleep, anti-depressants to live, and marijuana to feel.  And you wonder why so many young people check into Beit T’Shuvah.

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January 23, 2013 | 4:25 pm

Tips for Making T’Shuvah: A Simple Guideline for Redemption

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Ben Spielberg

1. Five words: “Oops, I made a mistake.” Everybody makes mistakes; not everybody admits it. Be the bigger man. Admit your wrongdoings.

2. Don't just say “sorry.” One of my biggest pet peeves is when people constantly apologize for everything they do—especially if they don't actually change anything after they've apologized. If you are going to say “sorry,” don't do it again!

3. Don't make the same mistake again. Performing the same action repeatedly and expecting the same results is literally insanity. I think that line might even be in the commercial for “Insanity.” Once again, all human beings make mistakes. If you continue making mistakes, you need to do something differently. Don't do it again. Stop it. I said don't do it.

4. Do something nice for other people. I've heard that the world is in a constant balancing act between good and evil. If you can't do much, do what you can to make the world a better place. Give blood. Volunteer at a soup kitchen. Donate $18 to Beit T'Shuvah because Ben Spielberg's Blog told you to.

5. Teach. Sometimes, there are things we can't apologize for. We hurt people. We burn bridges. That pain doesn't just go away on its own. Sometimes, the best thing we can do for ourselves is help other people not make the same mistakes we made. Talk to people. Offer advice. Share your experience with the world.

6. Live for t'shuvah. Redemption is unbalanced—one good action doesn't make up for one bad action. It's more exponential, and the best way to truly make the world a better place is to keep doing good things. Don't teach people once; teach them often. Say sorry when you make a mistake, and then don't make that mistake again. Donate $18 to Beit T'Shuvah on a monthly basis because Ben Spielberg's Blog told you to. Your soul will thank you.

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January 22, 2013 | 12:25 pm

What’s the Deal with Sweet Potatoes?

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Michael Welch

That brilliant idea that you have, the one that will change the world, the next Facebook, the next moveable print, the next Jack Lalanne Juicer—sorry to tell you, but it’s already been done.  Your original hypothesis will prove to be unoriginal. Brainstorm all you want, but it’s been pre-brainstormed. There is no such thing as independent thought. This may appear to be insolent banter but I believe this could mean something imperative to our existence that also informs social change. I am not saying that nothing new will ever evolve out of us—I am just saying that it is likely to arise out of collective agreement rather than independent thought. 

My favorite example of this is the 100 monkey theory. About 10 years ago a good friend of mine introduced me to this theory of social change. The gist of the theory began with a monkey fond for the taste of sweet potatoes struggling with the notion of them being covered in sand. The monkey then found a way of eradicating the sand by washing them in the ocean. Soon the other monkeys in the community slowly began to catch on and washed the sweet potatoes in the ocean. When the number of monkeys reached 100 later that day, the entire tribe caught on and began to wash their delicious sweet potatoes! The added energy of this hundredth monkey somehow created an ideological breakthrough. The biggest surprise to this experiment was when the habit of washing the potatoes jumped over the sea and other colonies began replicating this approach.

When a certain number of people achieve a critical number, a new awareness can be passed on from mind to mind. All I’m really saying is that if there are limited numbers of people introducing new concepts it will stay the conscious property of those few people. At this point, the idea achieves critical and spills into the general population.  Truly this is the only reason I can account for so many humans doing the Macarena. It has to be why I’m a half step behind every time I go to the patent office with my brilliant inventions. Sayings, words, and gestures that one day seem original appear in popular commercial branding the very next day. 

So, remember next time you find something intriguing, instead of issuing a generic comment such as “interesting”, “fascinating”, or “wonderful”, you should probably just say “Game day bucket go boom!” (KFC)

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January 21, 2013 | 2:28 pm

Poem for Redemption

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Yeshaia Blakeney

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January 19, 2013 | 9:05 pm

Welcome to the Real World.

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Rachel Goldman Neubauer

I had a discussion with a rabbi this past week that really had me appreciating the Beit T’Shuvah community even more than usual. 

He was describing to me a particularly standard response from a congregant to studying some realm of Jewish spirituality.  “…but Rabbi, I live in the real world…” which is usually followed by something along the lines of “where I need to make a living” or “where I need to think of my business.”  He then stated that in order to move someone into a more spiritual realm, you need to ‘break down’ that concept of “the real world.”

I thought about my own concept of the “real world” which, ironically, I found summed up pretty well on a Lululemon shopping bag.  “Friends are more important than money.”  I think about all of the times that I am or have been broken, and how the thought of money usually ends up either distracting me from growing out of my brokenness, or leading me into a deeper fracture.  Yes, success in business can give you a sense of purpose; however, friends, family, and community are there to hold you when you cry when something goes south.  Sure, they say that “money talks," but money doesn’t listen like friends do.  I guess this is something you have to be broken in order to really internalize.     

I then realized how lucky Beit T’Shuvah is.  Most people come to Beit T’Shuvah broken in one way or another.  They actually have the opportunity to realize that it isn’t just money that makes the world go ‘round.’  It’s life, it’s death, it’s friends, it’s family, it’s community, it’s connection. Those that don’t come overtly broken seem to catch on to this switch in perception, and they actually start to LOOK for the broken parts in them.  When people come to services at Beit T’Shuvah for the first time, they often say it’s just so “real”…and I think I finally understand what they mean by that.  It’s not something we necessarily advertise or say out loud…but walk around Beit T’Shuvah for a half hour and you will probably feel this sense of a “real world.”  I’m happy I get to be a part of that world. 

Shavuah Tov.

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January 18, 2013 | 11:39 am

How Many People Really Believe in Redemption?

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Rabbi Mark Borovitz

The problem with Redemption is that most people don't believe in it! I watch and participate with people all day, each day and I am amazed that, while most people give lip service to the idea of Redemption, very few believe they and/or others can achieve it. I have dealt with this all of my life, as I look back. I didn't believe in Redemption when I was a drunk and a criminal. I certainly didn't believe others really changed. I bought into the lie that "leopards don't change their spots." Until I learned Torah and T’Shuvah, it was impossible for me to accept the possibility of change. Yet, every revolution is a statement of Redemption/change. It is so hard to believe, for most humans, however.

As we get ready for the Inauguration, I am struck by how difficult it is for the Congress to redeem itself through working together and trust each other. I am struck at how difficult it is for people to accept an African-American as President. "Put the White back in the White House" was a slogan in the last campaign. While this was a small minority of people who ascribed to this statement, there was also a small minority who repudiated this slogan! This is the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Declaration and some people still believe in the inferior nature of African-Americans! We celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday this weekend and he was all about Redemption! Yet, I ask how many people really believe in Redemption?

Last Shabbat, David Siegel, the Consul General of Israel here in Los Angeles spoke at our services. He spoke about Israel being the beginning of Redemption and Beit T’Shuvah being the place where Redemption becomes fulfilled. Yet, even with our success, it is difficult for people to really believe others have been Redeemed and are Redeeming themselves. Why?

I think I have one of the reasons; it just came to me while writing this. When we support institutions, countries, and communities that are actively redeeming themselves and others, it places a burden on us to look at ourselves. Counsel General Siegel was eloquent in his words and inspiring with his deep Spiritual Commitment to Redemption. He saw it in action and recommitted all of us to work on Redeeming ourselves, each other and our Countries. He was/is unafraid to look at himself, his community and his country? Do we have his courage? Most of us, I have found, don't!

I challenge President Obama, Vice-President Biden, the Cabinet, and the Congress to dedicate themselves through action rather than rhetoric to redeem our economy, our people and our country. I challenge all of us to dedicate ourselves to the work of personal redemption rather than just lip service. I challenge all of us to support organizations that are involved in Redemption of the Human Spirit! Then we will be truly on the road to Redemption and be involved in the work we are created for: making our corner of the world a little better than we found it.

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January 17, 2013 | 12:31 pm

Sex, Drugs, and other Blogs

Posted by Beit T'shuvah

By Michael Soter

I was recently looking through the analytics on the “Addicted to Redemption” blog and noticed some interesting statistics.  One would think that the most popular blogs on the Jewish Journal would be about Torah, Israel, and the state of modern morality—but this is not the case.

The most popular entries have been about sex and marijuana—pop culture topics that I had thought would get the most traction on other Internet forums, but not necessarily on the website of a newsletter designed for the Jewish community.

I want to know why.   Why do these topics stir our attention and grab our focus while discussions of Torah lay by the wayside?  Maybe we are not so different from everyone else.  Maybe enlightened readers fiend for instant gratification just as much as gossip column junkies.  I wonder— what are the most popular articles in The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, and The New Yorker?  Do they follow this same trend?

I am not exempt.  I am certainly more likely to read a blog that has a picture of a marijuana leaf than one with an image of Moses hoisting two stone tablets, but I thought that I might be the exception rather than the norm.

Why are you reading this blog?  Is it because you thought it would be about sex and drugs?  Be honest…I’m not a harsh critic.

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